I had ended my last post on the subject discussing some of the main characters, mainly the English ones. It seems only fair to now discuss the main African characters, starting with Ignosi, alias Umbopa. We first encounter Umbopa when Sir Henry and Quatermain are putting together their team to head off to find Henry's brother. Umbopa wishes to sign on as one of their workers, and is insistent upon it to the point of them finding it a bit weird. I mean, the pay's good, but the probability of death is also high. Umbopa from the start also distinguishes himself from the other workers by his innate dignity, intelligence, and secrecy and you know that he's definitely got his own agenda. Of course, once we're told of the theft of the Kukuana throne by the usurper Twala, and about the missing- and presumed dead- son of the murdered king, it's not hard to put two and two together and figure out that Umbopa is actually Ignosi, the rightful king.
A common complaint is that, in this type of literature- and in this actual time period- Africans were always exploited and victimized by white men. There's certainly some justification for this. But in King Solomon's Mines, Haggard takes a rather nuanced approach to this idea, suggesting that this is a human condition rather than a racial one. When they are with the Kukuanas, Quatermain and the others witness many ways in which the people are being victimized by their corrupt old king and his sadistic advisor because they fear, with good reason, the consequences of opposing him. In addition, we witness Ignosi throughout the book, using people- mostly the Englishmen- for his own ends. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing; even if he has ulterior motives, he honestly does the job he signed on to do, risking his life with the others to get to where they're going. But the fact is, he signed on to the expedition because he knew that Sir Henry's group would be travelling through the land of his people and he wanted to get back there to challenge Twala and reclaim his birthright. And the reason that Ignosi had been living for so long in a part of the country occupied by white men is because he wanted to learn from them, become educated about the things which his people know nothing about, from scientific advancements to weaponry. He unhesitatingly uses this knowledge to take back the throne of his father, having no compunction about using rifles against his uncle's army, which is large in number but primitively armed with spears, etc. He also has no trouble using his people's lack of knowledge of white men (they've never seen them before) and their consequent fear and superstition against them, as witnessed by the use of Captain Good (his false teeth, etc.) and the eclipse, which demoralizes a good few of those who stand against him.
When Ignosi wins back the kingship, he could have just dismissed Sir Henry's quest. After all, he got what he wanted, he's now in power, and they are, let's face it, three foreigners in a remote and dangerous land. But Ignosi is an honorable man and gratefully acknowledges their help in overthrowing Twala. He doesn't continue on the quest with them himself; he has other concerns, like consolidating his position and setting up his government. But he does provide them with provisions and men to help them get the rest of the way, even if sparing the hag Gagool to guide them is a mixed blessing at best. And when they return, he invites them to stay and live among his people... he's a bit miffed when they turn down this offer, but they part as friends. He tells them though, that they are the only white men who will ever be welcome in Kukuanaland, no others will ever be allowed in. Shocking display of nationalism and antipathy for open borders... shocking.
The point of all this being, never is Ignosi portrayed as a hapless victim or a cardboard cutout stereotype. He's smart, tough, wily, brave, adaptable, willing to manipulate people and circumstances for his own ends, but also a man who keeps his word and deals honorably with those who do the same. This is so much more interesting than portraying him as a perpetual victim.
In my next- and final- post on King Solomon's Mines, I'll discuss the two other prominent characters in the novel who are not only African, but women!